I no longer work Sundays (yay!) and when the wife went out with the bairns to see her parents I took the opporchancity to head out on the pushbike and the camera around the village.
The fog had hit hard but the sun started to break through – the ideal time for some snaps!
Myself, Father and my eldest sister, decided to go for a wee walk on the last day of 2011. As the weather left a bit to be desired we decided to not go too far and agreed to have a wee trip up to the Hermitage and walk through to the Rumbling Bridge. Ian had been up there recently and he was rght about the mess the place was in. There were blown down trees all over the place, and not little trees, but big muckle ones. Most had been sawn up and moved out of the way, but the further you moved away from the car park, the more the fallen giants were left where they fell and a little bit of climbing was needed.
Rocks in the fast flowing Braan
Photo wise i decided to keep the ISO low at 100 and use the tripod, choosing the shutter speed, leaving the aperture to be decided by the camera. The River Braan was full and fast so the shutter was kept about 1sec to capture the movement but without whiting all detail out. Main problem was getting a different shot in such a well photographed place. The main falls are so often shot, as is the viewing hall and hermits cave. So settled for some more detail shots of the smaller falls and some of the low cloud snaking through the trees of Craigvinean Forest.
Low cloud in the Craigvinean forest
Although the ground was muddy and there was a dusting of snow we continued over trees, down paths and ignoring fathers idea of direction until we passed through a clearing, where a selection of bouders overlooked a rather Scottish looking, baran, mist filled clearing. Very atmosphereic in the winter weather. Then it was on to Rumbling Bridge, which we could hear well before could see as the river was so full and fast. However didn’t get many shots as the spray from the falls was pretty intense and couldn’t get down to usual vantage points due to high river and very slippery stones. So after a wee trip along the riverside we headed back to the car, taking the main path, which was also strewn with fallen trees and debris. So although cold and covered in mud by the time we got back, it was a good outing and was very glad to be out and about with the camera again.
Boulders overlooking the Misty Clearing
